January outdoor ceremony

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Ah, good to know!

Maybe plan some amazing outdoor photos!!!

My friend did her wedding in january when the snow was falling. pictures were nice (we had outdoor ones) and she paid a ton less money than im spending for my wedding

Winter wonderland wedding outdoors will be great with some heaters to give warmth for guests to feel comfortable. The price decrease seems great for what's being offered on the season. Considering the idea of your vision can look great with some getting suggestions from tent rentals and about heating. The professionals would be helpful if they provide as well to you.

You might be able to rent propane heaters, but I would be prepared for a super short ceremony or moving indoors if the weather sucks.


If there's snow people will need proper footwear and they'll then need to change into more formal shoes (so you might need space and benches for shoes to be changed and stored) and snow might get tracked inside making a slippery mess.
My biggest fear with a winter wedding is storms and getting snowed in/people or vendors not being able to make it.
The farmers almanac is calling this winter a "polar coaster" so we might be in for a freezing and rainy season (this might just be Atlantic Canada) which would be miserable to stand in for even the shortest ceremony.
The photos would be amazing though!!!

View quoted message I appreciate all of these replies! Good points, everyone.
Just found out the venue doesn't do outdoor ceremonies in the winter due to the cold breeze (it's near a lake), so I will look at doing it inside. 😊

I would advise against doing an outdoor ceremony in January. It could be -30. Your guests will be cold. I am miserable when I'm cold and have fingers and toes which have sustained frostbite; I would likely not attend a ceremony that was outside in January just for my own well-being. Also, if you have any elderly guests, remember that ability to regulate body temperature is very decreased for our elderly and could be dangerous.
I like Tori's idea of having the ceremony in front of a picture window.

Just make sure that you're picking January because you truly want it! Don't make any huge decisions just based on money.

We had the option for our florist to do the setup, and we decided to save money and do it ourselves. fast forward a few months and we HUGELY regretted that decision. Once we realized our mistake, it was too late, and our florist couldn't accommodate us anymore. Ended up hiring a day of coordinator, which was much more money than what our florist would have cost.

The savings are a definite gain, but consider what you may lose. Will you have to provide heating? Blankets? Winter wonderland lighting? Will you regret having to cut the ceremony short so your guests don't freeze?

Yes, you'll save $2000, but at what cost to the wedding you want?

Make sure you have lots of heating and a short ceremony! I went to an outdoor wedding in early May and it was FREEZING! The ceremony was nearly an hour long and the venue was known for indoor weddings, but there was nothing that specified that it was going to be outdoors!

So let your guests know well in advance, keep it short and sweet, and make sure you have a backup plan in case it's snowing too heavily to make the ceremony tolerable, let alone enjoyable!

One of my friends did an outdoor wedding in early January and it was gorgeous. I even contemplated having my own wedding in winter because of that wedding. So it's definitely doable, just make sure you make it really obvious that it'll be an outdoor ceremony on the invitations so guests can dress accordingly. And like Caitlyn said, some people might not like the idea, but the people that are nearest and dearest to you will brave it no matter what, so maybe make it clear that whoever wishes to can come to the ceremony and reception and the rest can come just for the reception if it's not a big deal to you to not have everyone witness the actual ceremony.

I'm planning my January wedding in Ontario for indoors. But an outdoor winter wedding would be gorgeous. I've seen photo/video of couples getting married outside or in ice castles so it's been done. I would suggest if you're going with an outdoor wedding to keep it short and sweet to minimize the amount of time that guests are outside. Also, be sure to let the guests know it's outside so they know to bundle up.

I don't know what your guests are like, but I will tell you honestly that I've gotten some upsetting comments from people upon hearing that we're having a winter wedding. We're having an indoor wedding and all some people can talk about is how cold it will be that time of year, I can't imagine how much complaining I'd hear if we were getting married outside. Just be prepared for your guests to be like some of mine who decide to get a bit....vocal about their feelings towards winter.

I had my wedding in the pouring rain! It was for sure doable - but it was pretty cold and it was only like 10°C so I would say an outdoor wedding in -20°C or colder wouldn't be ideal. Don't suppose your venue has a big window that you could get married in front of?

P.S. Congrats on the engagement and welcome to the weddingwire community!